Into the dark
by liliaeth
Summary: A cop investigates events at Buffy's house. (companion to Not the bad guy)
1. The sound of silence

Title: Into the darkness  
Author: Lore   
Rating: PG13   
Summary: Buffy goes dark   
Category:darkfic 

"It's just a noise complaint. Come on David, don't you think we have better things to do than busting up some party or making a kid turn the volume down." The older cop had been saying more or less the same since they'd answered the call from headquarters and David had steered their vehicle into the direction of Revello Drive.

He wasn't a rookie damn it. He'd been working in New York for over ten years, going from traffic control, to swat teams. Yet despite that, ever since he'd transferred to California, most of the others had been treating him like a new kid, fresh on the block. As if there was some big secret conspiracy that everyone but him was a part of. It really ticked him off.

"It's our job, Jim. If not us, who could ever go to file the complaints.."

Jim shot him a look of pure malice shaking his head in a decisive way like he wanted to say 'This isn't New York, you're a bloody newbie, don't get us killed'.

They could hear the reason for the noise complaint even from the street. N'Sync was ringing even up to the curb. He was about to get out of the car when he noticed that the front door was standing wide open. just as he went up to the door, the music stopped. David barely noticed his partner cautiously leaving the car, his weapon at the ready as if he were expecting to be jumped any momen now. There was an eiry hesitation in his partner's actions, as if he were scared to take a step. David took the lead, hoping his partner would watch his back and feeling the hairs strand up in the back of his neck. It could be nothing, maybe someone just finally cut the music off, maybe they just turned the music down, but somehow he was sure that wasn't the case. 

Their search of the ground-floor was thorough but fruitless. Looking up the stair-case David swallowed. His gut-feeling was telling him that there was something going on up there - something awful. Further he had the feeling that going up there was somewhat suicidal. 

"We're moving up."

Jim shook his head frantically mouthing one word, 'no' but David didn't heed it. Taking step after step he cautiously neared the second floor, his weapon at the ready. The door to one of the rooms was open and a muffled voice could be made out. David waved Jim up and pointed at the door. Very slowly, taking no risks, he neared the room until he was in the door-way. He unconsciously took a step to the side to avoid what he had been taught to be a death trap, his attention already on the scene in front of him.

There was a man standing next to the bed, holding a phone in his right hand.

"Police, freeze!"

The man looked up, he was wearing dark clothes, a heavy leather coat that had seen better days, dark jeans and for a change, a dark black shirt that seemed about two sizes too small. His bleached blond hair seemed to be frozen standing up and David could plainly make out black nail polish on his finger-nails. There was a look of profound shock and surprise in the man's eyes as he turned to them. David realising only secondary that Jim wasn't following him and still standing in the door-way, staring at something behind the blond.

What he did focus on was the girl lying in a slowly growing puddle of blood. Face and every patch of visible skin had the hue of what would soon be green and blue bruises. She'd been beaten her up, close to death, by a force strong enough to hit a hole in the ground next to her as the girl had struggled to get away.

David's inspection of the situation barely took a second before he returned his full attention to the man in black still holding the phone in his hands - hands that were now slightly raised into the air.

"Bloody hell, you're fast. Is the ambulance waiting as well? The bit needs help, right quick."

"Keep those hands where I can see them. Who are you, what's going on?" David noticed in the corner of his eyes that Jim had moved to the girl on the ground. There was a second girl curled up in the corner, blood on her hands, holding her legs. She was rocking herself gently and stared at the wall to his right obviously in a shock.

"I'm so sorry, it wasn't my fault..." She repeated the words constantly like a mantra and seemed oblivious to everything going on around her. Her eyes hadn't even focussed on him when David had said something.

"Where's that soddin ambulance," the black clad man hissed under his breath, almost hugging the still raised phone receiver to him but not moving an inch, not nearly conscious enough of the weapon aimed at his chest. "The kid needs help. Now!" David could almost swear he saw the punk's eyes light up golden.

Jim's face gained a grey tinge when he got up, his gaze locked with David's for only a second but the slight shake of his head indicated that it stood as bad with the girl as it looked. "I'll go see where they are and bring them up here."

Never in the last few weeks since they were partners had David seen Jim move so fast.

"Who were you calling?"

The man looked at David as if he'd gone insane. "You guys of course, 9 bleeding 11."

For the first time since entering the house he lowered his weapon, still weary of an attack but the other girl that was rocking in the corner looked pretty bad off as well and he wanted to take a look.

"Be careful."

David stared back at the punk, expecting a threat.

"I tried to get close before ... she ..."

"Did she do this?" David vaguely indicated the bloody girl on the floor. Not daring to touch her for fear he could make her injuries even worse he knelt down on the floor a fair distance away from the bloody pool, not trying to go closer to the rocking girl. He looked back to the man, noticing the bruise forming over the young man's eye for the first time. it seemed to be slightly fading, so it probably wasn't all that bad.

The young man's eyes fell down, he seemed defeated. "She ... something must have gotten into her, she'd never ... it can't ... she'd never harm Dawn."

A name. Dawn. David stored it away for later, then got up, moving over to the younger man whose eyes were locked on the broken figure, worry showing clearer on his face now that David had actually time to really look. 

"What happened, what did you see?"

"I came in and I found Buffy ... I pulled her back, off of Dawn. It was like she didn't even realize what she was doing till I got her off." The man stared up at him, the fear in his eyes felt even more worrisome.

Something weird was going on here, David could almost feel it in the air like something tangible. How could the girl that was sitting in a corner, rocking like she was a mental case have the strength to beat up a girl that seemed to be her height and her weight up like this? A mystery and David liked mysteries, especially after he solved them. Unbelievable. He had to be sure he didn't jump to conclusions. "She," he pointed into the corner, "did this?"

"I ..." It was clear the man was pulled in between two urges, the need to protect the girl that was bleeding, and the lack of desire to harm the other by accusing her of that kind of crime. "It's not like her at all."

"What do you think ha-" He couldn't finish his question when Jim stormed back into the room, on his heels two paramedics with a stretcher.

to be continued


	2. Rumble in Sunnydale

Standing in the middle of the living room David tiredly rubbed his eyes. It had been a long night. He had been asked to leave the room by the paramedics. It seemed that they were too afraid to move the girl before knowing what was wrong and had called a doctor to the site. What David found weird was that they had been prepared for the blood-loss, they had carried an insulated bag around with them that resembled a small blood bank.

He had tried to talk once more to the blond guy, only to see him leave as soon as the paramedics came in. For some reason he seemed to avoid looking at the blood. Oh what the hell, a guy could be squeamish no matter how tough he seemed. Besides it wasn't like he'd left the house, the guy had been hanging around the front door ever since.

Suddenly the door was opened with so much drive it bounced off the wall and started to close again before a dark haired, tall, young man entered the house. Interesting. More interesting was the fact that he was pushing the blonde guy back in, pinning him against the wall. 

"Spike!"

David nearly cheered but repressed the notion in time. At least he had a name to go by now. Spike, what kind of name was that? 

"What the hell did you do? What's the police and the ambulance doing here? What on earth happened?"

"It wasn't me! I did nothing..." The last word came out more defeated than anything else. "Buffy was hitting her Whelp. Hitting Dawn."

The dark haired young man banged Spike against the wall, hissing, "What are you saying, Buffy would never hit Dawn." 

"She'd never do that. Did you get her under some kind of thrall. Seduce her to the dark side so she'd sleep with you. Is that it!" Another rough shove against the wall.

"I think that stops right there." Two surprised sets of eyes looked at David when he spoke up. "I'm officerDeinhammer and I'm with Sunnydale PD." He showed the newcomer his mark, just to be sure. "I need both your names."

"Names, ..." The dark haired man, nicknamed 'the whelp' by the other turned to him in confusion. "I'm Xander Harris. I'm a friend of the family," he almost stuttered.

David could remember the name Harris, he'd seen it before, a few times at that, but he wasn't sure where. "Xander? Is that a nick-name?" When Harris nodded David raised an eyebrow. "Your full name is ..." Leaving the end of the sentence hang off to prompt an answer he looked at the strange tableau. Harris was still pinning Spike to the wall. Why had he jumped to the conclusion that the other man had something to do with the happenings? There had been no blood on Spikes hands or David would have put handcuffs on the guy a good hour ago.

"Alexander Lavelle Harris." Thankfully Harris lost his hold on the blond guy. "I just don't like this piece of filth hanging around Buffy. I don't know what he's been telling you, but he's probably responsible for whatever happened here."

"Why you bastard!"

"What you gonna do, Fangless? Kill me?" Harris was clearly taunting Spike, talking down on him like he was too far below him to talk to. The two were a hair's breath away from another fight.

Shaking his head almost unnoticeable David stepped between the pair, then raised an eyebrow at Harris, keeping his gaze cool and consciously banning the interest out of it.   
"Why, Mister Harris, this man probably saved Dawn's live by calling the ambulance as quickly as he did. I seriously doubt he would have acted like he did if he had wanted to kill the young woman."

"Yeah right."

Why couldn't Jim be here with him right now? These two were ready to start a brawl that might lead to even more bloodshed.

"Where's Buffy? What happened."

David pointed upstairs, "Miss Summers is still upstairs, she could not yet be arrested due to the importance of the victim being treated right away. As far as I could find out Buffy Summers came home to a house that was filled with very loud music, she left her jacket and hand-bag on the couch." He pointed at the things that seemed to have been carelessly and in anger flung on the sofa. "She proceeded upstairs to the victim. As of now we don't know what happened then. All we know is that a fight started and that Buffy Summers beat up Dawn almost to a point where you can't tell if she's human or not." Harris stared at him unbelievingly. "Now, what would interest me greatly is why you think that this man has anything to do with it."

"It's ... He's in a gang."

It sounded like the worst excuse David had heard in all of his career, and he'd heard a lot more of those since he'd arrived in Sunnydale. Cause with all the talks of gangs - and gang-violence - the weirdest part of it all ... he had yet to see a single gang-member anywhere in town. It shouldn't shake him so much, but with the regularity that the SD Police put down gang violence, you'd almost had to believe Sunnydale was overrun by them.

Furthermore, Harris wasn't very believable the way his voice shook. The look in his eyes clearly told David that he was lying. Together with the small droplets of sweat on Harris fore-head. He knew with absolute certainty that this was not even close to what the young man had wanted to say.

"I'm ... out on probation." Spike muttered the words, as if he was trying to support the other's claim.

David wondered if he even realized that one check with the computer would prove or disproof that theory. Still, he didn't have the guys real name. "It was Buffy Summers whose hands were bloody, not yours."

Utter shock displayed openly on Harris face. "That's impossible."

"Oh gee Harris, can't imagine your saint Buffy with bloody hands."

It was clear that Spike's anger sprouted more from his inability to prevent what had happened, but Harris seemed unwilling to see that, attacking him again. He pulled some long kind of wooden stick from his coat, attacking Spike. If David didn't know better he'd think that Spike was growling as he pushed the other back, kicking him in the chest before falling down, grabbing his head in pain

David acted instantly, grabbing Harris' right hand that was still holding on to the wood. Pushing him to the ground David kneeled on the angry young man's back. "That's it. Attacking a man in front of a cop is a very bad idea." He looked at Spike, "You will have to accompany us as well, you're an important witness."

"As if." He hissed the word.

Harris just glared at him and the blond man lost control. Jumping at Harris, and hitting him in the face. It was just one hit before he grabbed for his head again. David wondered what was up with that. Then again, he still couldn't tolerate anyone hitting a man who'd already been handcuffed.

Inwardly sighing he took hold of the blond man and shoved him against the wall, "Now, now, boys, if you can't behave you shouldn't be surprised when you find yourself in a cell." Spike didn't even resist as he was handcuffed. He seemed too busy swearing about some chip to resist.

He watched as both men were put in different police cars, the girl was still just sitting there, her hands cuffed. He wanted to go up to her and say something, but before he could, Jim had already gotten to her and ordered her to the car.


End file.
